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In Depth Show Blog - April 15

Monday - 4/15/2013, 8:36pm EDT

This is the In Depth show blog. Here you can listen to our interviews, find more information about the guests on the show each day, as well as links to other stories and resources we discuss. On today's show, Federal News Radio reporter Jared Serbu filled in for Francis Rose.

Today's guests:

Dan GordonAssociate Dean for Government Procurement Law
George Washington University

Dan Gordon, associate dean for government procurement law at George Washington University and former administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, joins In Depth for a deep-dive discussion of federal acquisition and procurement trends. The conversation kicked off with a conversation about a new law article Gordon wrote on the costs and benefits of bid protests.

Dan Blair, the deputy DoD inspector general for audit, joins In Depth to discuss the Pentagon's progress on auditability. Blair says DoD's leadership and its workforce are dedicated to getting to a position where audits can be done sustainably for years to come. And while there have been some success stories in individual DOD agencies, the department as a whole has a long way to go.

Doctors and non-hospital contracts at the Indian Health Service are supposed to be negotiated at reduced rates to save taxpayer dollars. But the IHS is a little behind. In the vast majority of cases, IHS is paying the health care equivalent of sticker prices, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Kathleen King, director of health care issues at GAO, joins In Depth to discuss the new report.

On average it takes about 45 days to earn a security clearance. It's down from about 190 days back in 2005. But the process still has potholes and hurdles that can trap unwary applicants. Nicole Smith, an associate at Tully Rinckey, joins In Depth to discuss some the challenges in the security-clearance backlog.